Google and its Evil Face Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Google and its Evil Face - Essay Example The world declares the search engine as a mine for information, but fails to look at the down side to it since in reality Google is a corruption of the world in relation to information, privacy and security. Google states its mission as the organization of the world’s information so that it can be reached by anyone in the world. However, even when it provides plenty of information to the reader, this search engine is the worst thing to have happened to our society in relation to worsening of peoples’ reading habits, where there is no more reading in books. This is affecting comprehension of content acquired from reading books and read from Google search results. Google is a great tool to get any form of information; however, it is creating negative tendencies in our society. This is concerning Google users becoming careless on the information they search for and the safety concerns on privacy (Staff and Agencies). For this reason, searching for information on Google sho uld involve allocation of enough time in order to search for adequate information and resources, while putting into consideration privacy and security concerns. In fact, what society gets by using Google is quantity information, and not quality, which is what people instinctively want. Therefore, the public gets into a comfort zone, which it does not intend to leave due to the ease of operation for humans in that level. For instance, on a five-year research program the British Library and one by a U.K. educational consortium, they found out that people get obsessed with looking for information once they log on (Carr). In such cases, the users search for articles and journals that they do not necessarily read or intend to read, but instead keep searching. After this, the focus lies in skimming through the articles without taking the time to understand the concept. Consequently, people do not go to libraries to find information in books or from the periodicals rooms. As a result, Goog le is affecting the society through giving them quantity and by that, people stop reading books because; with only typing in Google search what they need, it would be an instant when they get the answers and all the necessary information requested. Google as any other social network wants to control what the users do. Therefore, they would not go and join other search engines, which provide email and the location where they are. Google is controlling the users by buying new markets and expanding in new areas, they get new features, a faster search and there is no one that can compete with this search engine (Rooketix Ltd). Similarly, bringing of Chrome for Android into the market has revealed how Google is potential of remembering all our browsing history and their capacity to transfer it into the cloud (Moreni). Therefore, if anyone is logged into a Google account, it is stated in the Google privacy policy that any service used will be able to track universally by using the e-mail address and your current location. Moreover, they are able to track everything you search for, and as long as you look for that same topic repeatedly, advertisements will start to appear on the sides according to the most current topics every user searches (Davies). Google based on its mission statement has gone as far as attempting to collect as much information as it can. This is in relation to creating a form of online storage the documents and other files that people have. Following the mission statement of Google, it seeks to create a database of all the knowledge that exists in the world and place it in a central place for all to access free of charge. In light of this, Google has come up with Google Drive, which saves up to five gigabytes of user documents;

Dell's Value Chain Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Dell's Value Chain - Essay Example It has allowed its suppliers to view their orders and the current of inventory at the company. This allows for planning and providing components that are only needed. Besides, the strategy helps the company avoid excessive costs of market promotion. While it has remained a policy of reducing operational costs, this has enabled the company to establish to order model. Additionally, the company continues to expand its model through allowing consumers to seek queries and make purchases on the web platform. Although this comes with an additional transportation cost, it has over time proved relatively cheaper. In the current market where forces of demand and ever-changing customer specification, the company has shifted to internet sales and direct engagement of the prospective clients. Through virtual space, the company has continued to expand its sales and attract specific clients who value choice. Moreover, the company has expanded this chain through the creation of tracking system. The web pages have been customized. This allows bigger suppliers and larger customers to keep monitoring their purchases and make new orders. Notably, by investing in web pages and internet supply chain, it has created a unique customer base in addition to its traditional consumers. Blending to order supply chain help in reducing long chains that are often costly, inconvenient and ineffective. The web-based chain remains a critical-order supply chain. †¨ To measure process performance, three elements are of great importance. The priority is responsiveness to customer’s demands and changing the competitive environment. The company has improved its operations efficiency by customizing its web pages; this has allowed large businesses to view existing inventory and make orders based on informed point of view (Kumar & Craig, 2007). In addition, the company has adopted customer order tracking system that enables it to assemble its products upon

Assessment of carnival cruise lines competitive position

Assessment of carnival cruise lines competitive position Carnival Cruise Lines is certainly the leader of their industry. They are the industry standard for quality, have massive revenues, and the largest growth. In fact, the company continues to set new passenger number records. The first thing I will do in evaluating the companys competitive position is to do a SWOT analysis. Some of the companys main strengths include: cruise capacity levels, branding, variety of activities, price compared to other vacation options, and their ability to stay frugal and efficient. The main weaknesses I have identified were they were still considered to be an expensive option for vacations, perceptions of lower-quality (despite major quality improvements), perceptions of being geared to certain demographics, and some IT issues. Certain opportunities available to the company include a chance to narrow the gap between quality and perception of quality, direct marketing through new intermediaries, and more growth in their industry. Major threats to the compa ny are the economy, fuel prices, and hurricane seasons. Overall, looking at the SWOT analysis, it is easy to see why CCL is the industry leader. They have many strengths, only a few weaknesses, opportunities to work on their weaknesses, and threats that affect many industries, not just their own. Looking at the five competitive forces model, I believe CCL is in a strong competitive position. The only threat I think is a big deal for the company at this point is the threat of fierce competition. Ten brands control 95% of the market, and despite the bad economy those companies are also showing growth. Not only does CCL compete against other cruise ships, they also compete against other forms of vacation entertainment. Some examples mentioned in the case include the vacation opportunities in the Orlando and Las Vegas markets. To make sure they handle this competition, the company must continue to improve in order to dominate the market. The threat of new entrants is weak because of the major start-up costs in their industry and the importance of brand-recognition in their industry. The bargaining power of the buyers is moderate-to-weak because switching costs for customers are high when considering the value they get with CCL despite possible substitutes. Bargaining power of sup pliers is getting weaker as travel agencies are going away and costs of dealing with the customer are being minimized. It is possible that CCL will have to deal with the threat of substitute products because there are viable options beyond CCL. However, CCL has positioned themselves very well to deal with this competition through giving the customer great value for the price. They mentioned in the case that their goal with each customer is to exceed the customers expectations to the best of their ability. Doing so will add value to firm because it will likely increase the customers willingness to pay. Another way to continue to improve the company will include using a virtual value chain with online intermediaries rather than travel agents in order to lessen the costs of booking customers and to directly market to prospective customers. I believe this can add great value to the firm by decreasing the cost of doing business through intermediaries and increasing customer awareness of vacationing with CCL. If they can take advantages of their opportunities, their competitive position will continue to be strong. Question 2: Should CCL implement a CRM strategy? (Justify your answer). If so, how would you implement it? If not, what other enterprise systems would you recommend instead? (Justify your answer). Perform a security and privacy risk assessment related to your recommendation. For each major risk, what should the company do? There are positives and negatives for CCL implementing a CRM strategy. I will use this chance to make an argument for implementing a CRM strategy, highlight the positive aspects of this strategy and explain how this strategy makes up for the negative aspects. They are the industry leaders in almost every aspect of their business except for lagging information systems. If they improve this aspect of their business, they can possibly increase their strategic advantages for the long-term future. For now, CCL enjoys a strong relationship with travel agents who refer their clients to CCL regularly. This has been a very valuable relationship for CCL over the years. The market is changing in the travel and tourism industry because of the development of intermediaries on the internet who make direct connections from customer to business. This trend is going to be the dominant way of doing business in the short-term and long-term futures of the industry. CCL management argues in the case that they want to balance this relationship with travel agents with this new wave. I argue that travel agents are on their way out of business and it should not be a focus for the company in the long-term. Having a CRM strategy will improve their abilities to reach out to the customer base on the internet and should transform their value chain completely to virtual means. This will cut their costs dramatically and will help the bottom line. This also allows the customer to ask for services directl y from CCL. This can result in greater customer service for CCL. It mentioned in the case that the handoff of information from CCL to travel agent to customer was often slow. Eliminating the need for travel agents and dealing directly with customers will also improve customer service by making it a much faster and more efficient process. To me, it makes a lot of sense for CCL. This CRM strategy will not be an overnight process and neither will the demise of the travel agent business, so the strategy they have for now should serve their needs well until they develop this strategy to an acceptable level. There were quite a few other key points I read in the case that stand out to me in supporting a CRM strategy. Management stressed the importance of fitting their services to customers changing tastes. This is a reasonable goal. If this goal is truly important, developing a successful CRM strategy can help them track these changing tastes in the most effective way. This includes a possible improvement in the check-in process for customers boarding the cruise ship. The current process requires hours for each customer in order to pass through security. If they can update their information systems to hold security information and some biometrics, security can be quicker and possibly of better quality. The case also pointed out that CCL has a wide variety of customers unlike their competitors. This can be a great advantage to the company if CCL can utilize their information systems in a way that provides the company with information about the mix of customers they have for a certain cruis e. Planning for a customer base that is homogenized is much easier than making strategic plans for a customer base that is diverse. It would certainly be an advantage to CCL to have a CRM strategy that helped them with this diverse customer base. They mention in the case that customer loyalty is a great strength of the company and they hope to continue to increase customer loyalty. Having a CRM strategy that can help improve customer service and improve the services offered to customers and can certainly create loyalty. One aspect of their CRM strategy I would not be as concerned with is developing a highly detailed rewards program to go along with it. The company has experimented with this idea and has a simple system they use. I think it would be fine to continue with something simple like this but do not see any reason to create a detailed plan. I believe the degree of customability is low for this industry and the repurchase rate for customers is typically once a year. Therefore, investing in a rewards program would result in a low payoff. Also, competitors in their industry have tried using rewards programs and the results have not been positive for these companies. At this point, I do not see a major need for CCL to develop their rewards program further. So I have argued for a new CRM strategy. How does CCL implement such a strategy? First, it has to be realized that CRM strategies are only strategies, not technology. In order to effectively implement this kind of strategy, it is imperative that there is an information technology infrastructure in place. This means that the databases have to be strong and the information has to be reliable. This is the first step of the process for implementation. According to the case, CCL already has the databases there for use, including Oracle databases called Property Management Systems (PMS) and Point of Sale (POS). The problem right now with their infrastructure is issues they have with data integrity and availability, as pointed out on page 412. Regardless of whether or not CCL implements a CRM strategy, issues with data integrity and availability are major issues that should be dealt with to have good information and security. The second step of implementing the new CRM strategy is to change the database design in a way that can improve customer and transactional data so the company can use the information. Having this data funnel into one data store can help the company get the most out of the relationships they build with the various intermediaries they will have online as well as through their website. Certainly, at this point implementing a CRM strategy will require major considerations for funding and how this information system will be created or bought. For funding initiatives within this new CRM strategy, the steering committee will have to figure out what would add the greatest value to the firm and what they will do to create the information systems that fit this strategy. At this point, I do not think I have enough information in order to have an opinion on how to do this. As I mentioned earlier in the paper, security and privacy risk seems to be a major issue for this company. It was mentioned in the case that information integrity and availability are not at acceptable levels. This has to be addressed immediately in order to have good information, which is imperative for effective information systems. Security and privacy are not just IT issues; they are issues that go the very top of management. Therefore, measures have to be put in place to protect the information that CCL obtains from using this CRM strategy. The information systems created because of this strategy will likely contain very sensitive information such as credit card numbers. In accordance with the importance placed on privacy, the company should look to obtain a trust seal from TRUSTe, WebTrust, or the Better Business Bureau. Also, a privacy statement should be drafted for the site in order to help gain the customers trust. Beyond that, I think the major issue will be preventing hac kers from getting sensitive information from the companys information systems and I think one step that will help is hiring a third party to conduct an information systems audit. This will help the company identify weaknesses that they can improve. Policies and training for employees will also need to be evaluated in order to prevent phishing or social engineering. If they can continually assess their security and privacy needs with the suggestions I have made, their security and privacy should be fine. It will then be up to the company to straighten out the mess they made with their information quality.

Essay --

Oprah Winfrey once said, â€Å"The greatest discovery of all time is that a person can change his future by merely changing his attitude† (Flanagan 118). This quote is a testimony to her personal life. Born in 1954 whenever African Americans were still fighting for equality, Winfrey had racism to endure. Additionally, her family faced much economic hardship. During her childhood, Winfrey encountered physical and sexual abuse. Somehow, she persevered against all odds to become one of America’s most significant philanthropists. Oprah Winfrey is an inspiration to all because of her dexterity to conquer her adversities to attain any goal. Winfrey’s mother, Vernita Lee, was only 18 years old whenever she gave birth. Winfrey’s father, Vernon Winfrey, was unaware that he had a child until months after she was born. He was excluded from Winfrey’s life originally, for he was a soldier away in Mississippi. That meant that Oprah would be receiving care from her mother and grandmother in the deepest of poverty (Weston 13). Winfrey said, â€Å"I am grateful for living in poverty because it makes success so much more rewarding† (â€Å"Dave and Oprah Recap†). After a few years, Winfrey’s mother traveled to Milwaukee for a job opportunity as a maid. She left Winfrey under the sole supervision of her grandma, Hattie May Lee. Winfrey later said, â€Å"I am what I am today because of my grandmother; my strength, my sense of reasoning, everything† (Weston 14). Hattie May had grown too sick to care for Winfrey, so she was sent to live with Lee in Milwaukee. Her new home was one room in a boardinghouse. Winfrey said, â€Å"I felt like I was an outcast. I don’t know why my mother ever decided she wanted me. She wasn’t equipped to take care of me. I was just an extra burden ... ...ty. She has transformed from the lowest of lows to the highest of highs, all by having faith and perseverance. She believed that she had a higher purpose in life, and that God was leading her on the path to change the world. In fact, her final words on the set of The Oprah Winfrey Show, â€Å"To God be the glory† (Flanagan 106). Though she stumbled on this path due to resentment and anger, she returned to her good ways with the stern love from her father and a second chance at life. Winfrey was able to achieve great things by believing in herself and in others. She has contributed millions of dollars to help women, families, and children to be supported in education and in life. What makes Winfrey such a remarkable being is that she was able to overcome her adversities to achieve any goal. Her selfless acts are appreciated by the millions of people that she influences.

Industrialization by Invitation

Industrialisation is the process of social and economic change whereby a social group is transferred from a manual labor based structure to a more technologically driven society and where the economy gains much more capital via manufacturing industries. Caribbean economies have been labeled as weak and dependent, and controlled by stronger foreign states and institutions (The Plantation Economy). Sir Arthur Lewis, St. Lucia? s first Nobel Prize winner, has released several publications on the issue of underdeveloped nations in the Caribbean and solutions to correct this underdevelopment.Of these publications is the concept of ? Industrialisation by invitation?. Lewis felt that this was a step needed to be taken for the British West Indies to develop. Sir Arthur Lewis policy aided in the development of the B. W. I but the policy itself also hindered development as well as left out major aspects of development. After Lewis studied the system known as Operation Bootstrap (policy of deli berately inviting foreign direct investors) in Puerto Rico, he set out to adopt and implement similar in the British West Indies.The economies of the British Caribbean were mainly agricultural and there was a need to stimulate industrial growth and trade in manufactured goods, to diversify the economic base, since these economies were mainly monocrop economies. This term not only refers to the dependence on sugar and bananas, it also characterizes the dependence on tourism or the oil industry. Lewis therefore proposed the strategy to invite foreign investment as a way to stimulate growth, not only in industry but also agriculture, and therefore to reduce the dependency on the export sector.He reasoned that the British West Indies had a great abundance of unskilled labour in agriculture and amongst the unemployed. These countries did not have much capital. Thus multinational corporations (MNCs) with millions of dollars at their disposal were to be invited to the British West Indies w here they could earn huge profits by employing cheap surplus labour from agriculture. They would also benefit from tax holidays for the first five or ten years of their operations, and other concessions such as subsidies.In other words incentives would be offered to encourage these corporations to invest . Caribbean governments popularly adopted this policy in the 1960s. Several foreign based companies that are established today in the Caribbean are the result of Sir Lewis’ policy. This is most apparent in the tourist industry many foreigners have invested in hotels which employ the majority of people. Several countries within the Caribbean have attempted Sir Arthur Lewis? concept of ? Industrialisation by Invitation? with the outcomes being mixed. This meaning that it expanded direct foreign investment, injecting capital into local institutions. However, this increase in foreign investment brought about a higher dependency level on technology, raw materials and capital from abroad. Without these investments, the Caribbean would still be in a pre-industrialised state, with little growth in the economies. It has been argued that Caribbean economies have achieved a lot of growth; however without or in fact limited development.Yes, the region? s infrastructure has improved dramatically but their industries and companies are mainly foreign and therefore a substantial amount of profits made are sent abroad. Development therefore has been limited with the major organizations within the economy being foreign and not indigenous. Sir Arthur Lewis? concept of ? Industrialisation by Invitation? was not completely successful since the ? development? of the countries? economies did not reach the limits Lewis predicted.Currently the world market has a major negative effect and influence on the Caribbean economies due to the region? s dependence on foreign investments. Example of an essay on industrialization invitation theory Arthur Lewis Industrializagtion by invita tion To what extent can it be argued that Sir Arthur Lewis policy of ‘Industrialisation by Invitation’ aided in the development of the B. W. I By Jennine Small. According to Nassur Mustapha development is defined as, ‘the progressive process of human, cultural, political, economic and social change, which shapes people’s lives. The southern countries particularly the Caribbean have been classified as developing countries, which are still somewhat dependent on the metropolis which once colonized them. Sir Arthur Lewis in the immediate post- World War II period advocated industrialization of the British West Indies, he adopted a policy called ‘ Industrialisation by Invitation. ’ He felt that this was a step needed to be taken for the British West Indies to develop. Sir Arthur Lewis policy aided in the development of the B. W. I but the policy itself also hindered development as well as left out major aspects of development.The Industrial Revoluti on was one of those historical events which drastically changed societies all over the world. Despite the revolution having its roots in Europe , particularly Britain it then spread to places like the U. S. A and later the Caribbean. Industrialization became the mechanism used for a society to make the transition from a traditional, labour intensive economy based on agriculture (agrarian) to a more capital- intensive economy based on manufacturing by machines , specialized labour and Industrial factories.Sir Arthur Lewis recognized the importance of Industrialisation but realized that the British West Indies could not do it on their own, they would need financial aid, in the form of investments which could stimulate Industrialisation. After Lewis studied the system known as Operation Bootstrap (policy of deliberately inviting foreign direct investors) in Puerto Rico, he set out to adopt and implement similar in the British West Indies.The economies of the British Caribbean were main ly agricultural and there was a need to stimulate industrial growth and trade in manufactured goods, to diversify the economic base, since these economies were mainly monocrop economies. This term not only refers to the dependence on sugar and bananas, it also characterizes the dependence on tourism or the oil industry. Lewis therefore proposed the strategy to invite foreign investment as a way to stimulate growth, not only in industry but also agriculture, and therefore to reduce the dependency on the export sector.He reasoned that the British West Indies had a great abundance of unskilled labour in agriculture and amongst the unemployed. These countries did not have much capital. Thus multinational corporations (MNCs) with millions of dollars at their disposal were to be invited to the British West Indies where they could earn huge profits by employing cheap surplus labour from agriculture. They would also benefit from tax holidays for the first five or ten years of their operatio ns, and other concessions such as subsidies.In other words incentives would be offered to encourage these corporations to invest . Caribbean governments popularly adopted this policy in the 1960s. Several foreign based companies that are established today in the Caribbean are the result of Sir Lewis’ policy. This is most apparent in the tourist industry many foreigners have invested in hotels which employ the majority of people. In Antigua for example, 50% of the population is employed in the tourism industry.In addition to this, infrastructure such as roads and transportation has been developed by governments to complement these businesses. Foreign investors have introduced the latest technologies and influenced the improvement of public services. On the contrary, the policy is very much economically based , its aim is for countries to achieve economic growth. However development also includes other aspects, there is no indication on how foreign investers may positively impa ct the quality of life , welfare or education.Therefore this policy cannot be seen as aiding development in the British West Indies as a whole , as the policy was based primarily on the stimulation of economic growth. In addition, most of the money earned by these investors have been repatriated to their home countries thus money is not invested in the economy, this is a grave issue with serious implications for the tourism industry. The policy eventually failed in the British West Indies, mainly because the Caribbean governments invited the MNCs but did not control them.When the initial period of the tax-free holidays were up they ‘closed up shop' and moved on. They were mainly capital-intensive industries, virtually no provisions were made for training citizens to organize and run similar plants, such as the assembly of motor vehicles and small appliances. Hence no sustainable development. Neo-marxists who came up with the dependency theory, also initially developed their th eory in Latin America. Andre Gunder Frank and Samir Amin were the two theorists associated with this school of thought .Both argued that the third world countries are classified as the Peripheries and the Western/ Industrialised capitalist countries are the core. The former being largely dependent on the latter. The development of the core countries caused the underdevelopment of the periphery since economic surplus was transferred from the latter to the former for expansion purposes. These sociologists recommended that the peripheries need to break the link between them and the core in order to be self- sufficient and independent.Therefore the MNCs can be seen as detrimental according to this perspective dependence is an undesired state and situation . It only causes, injustice, unfairness and exploitation. Following from the dependency theory, we can assert that foreign companies therefore would not be aiding development but hindering it for their metropolis benefit. They would en courage the mindset of preference for foreign goods thus maintaining dependence.It can be seen that the Industrialisation by Invitiation policy is indeed a controversial one when considering whether it has aided development in the Caribbean. There is no doubt that MNCs are an important means to economic development. However in order for a country to develop, the country must have control of its own businesses and resources, move away from traditional economic models that make them dependent on foreigners and also perpetuate the legacy of colonialism in how the Caribbean economy is structured.Grade Profile Knowledge & Understanding – 7/10 Interpretation & Analysis – 7 /10 Synthesis & Evaluation – 7/10 The student demonstrates a very good understanding of the subject matter under examination. Interpreted and evaluated the question well. Student should have named some Companies or a company that emerged as a result of IbyI in their territory and explain the advanta ges and disadvantges of the policy using the ‘live' example as the base. Altogether however this was a good

Is persuasion ethical? Essay

This simple question has engaged scholars and practitioners alike. Aristotle and Plato discussed it. Machiavelli touched on it. So have modern communication scholars and social psychologists. And you can bet that practitioners—Tommy Hunger, Phil Knight, Donna Karan, even Michael Jordan—have given it a passing thought, no doubt on the way to the bank. Yet persuasion ethics demand contemplation. As human beings we want to be treated with respect, and we value communications that treat others as an ends, not a means, to use Immanuel Kanf s famous phrase. At the similar time, we are practical creatures, who want to achieve our goals, whether they are financial, social, emotional, or spiritual. The accomplishment of goals—money, esteem, love, or religious fulfillment— requires that we influence others in some fashion somewhere along the way. Is the need to influence contrary with the ethical treatment of human beings? Some scholars would say it always is. Plato, who regarded truth as â€Å"the only reality in life, † was offended by persuasive communication (Golden et al. , 2000, p. 17). As, he regarded rhetoric as a form of adulation that appealed to people’s worst instincts. Although Plato did believe in an ideal rhetoric estimably composed of truth and morality, he did not think that ordinary persuasion measured up to this standard. The German philosopher Immanuel Kant would view persuasion as immoral for a diverse reason: In his view, it uses people, treating them as means to the persuader’s end, not as appreciated ends in themselves (Borchert & Stewart, 1986). This violates Kant’s ethical principles. In a similar fashion, Thomas Nilsen (1974) has argued that persuasion is immoral because a communicator is trying to encourage someone to do something that is in the communicator’s best interest, but not essentially in the best interest of the individual receiving the message. As considerate as these perspectives are, they set up a rather high bar for human communication to reach. What’s more, these authors tend to lump all persuasive communication together. Some communications are certainly false, designed to manipulate people by appealing to base emotions, or are in the interest of the sender and not the receiver. But others are not. Some messages make very intelligent appeals, based on logic and evidence. Additionally, not all persuaders treat people as a means. Therapists and health professionals ordinarily accord clients a great deal of respect. The best counselors treat each person as unique, an inexplicable treasure to be deciphered and understood. Many people who do volunteer work—such as those who counsel teens in trouble or AIDS victims—do not receive great financial benefit from their work. Their communications can be extremely much in the best interest of those receiving the message. On the other extreme are philosophers who argue that persuasion is basically moral. Noting that people are free to recognize or reject a communicator’s message, conservative thinkers tend to embrace persuasion. Believing that people are adequately rational to distinguish between truth and falsehood, libertarian scholars argue that society is best served by diverse persuasive communications that run the gamut from completely truthful to totally fallacious (Siebert, Peterson, & Schramm, 1956). Persuasion, they say, is better than coercion, and people are in any incident free to accept or reject the communicator’s message. There is some understanding in this perspective. However, to say that persuasion is intrinsically moral is an extreme, absolute statement. To suppose that people are capable of maturely rejecting controlling communicators’ messages naively neglects cases in which trusted but evil people exploit others’ vulnerability. What of men who trick or seduce women and then take advantage of their dependence to demand added sexual and emotional favors? Perhaps we would argue that the women chose to get involved with the men—they’re persuaded, not coerced—but it would be heartless to propose that such persuasion is moral. Moreover, the idea that all communication should start somewhere and that the individual or organization that it starts from influences the way the communication is expressed (Forsyth, D. R. , & Kelley, K. N. 1994). The idea that all communication goes somewhere that the sender’s view of what the audience is like will influence how they frame their communication, but that the receiver will also tend to take their own meanings from the communication, despite of what was intended in the first place. Just as students on a course must have to work in a variety of formats, so also they should have to deal with a diversity of audiences so that the effect of audience on what is said and how will be reinforced. All communication is put together with some purpose in mind, whether or not the sender is fully aware of what this is. Again, one can understand the communication and its effects better if one is fully aware of what the real purpose of it is. It must become apparent that what we think someone’s purpose is, is more significant than what it actually is. The pupils will come to understand that we act on postulations when decoding messages. The physical or social situation in which the communication takes place will constantly affect how it is understood, and will perhaps affect how it is put together in the first place. In terms of interpersonal and group communication, it is at least helpful to discuss or simulate examples which may be described as public or private situations so as to get across the force of this concept. Try getting a pupil to role-play behaviour in public that they would usually use at home, and the point will have been made (Dunbar, N. E. , & Allen, T. H. 2003). All communication has to be put into some form such as speech or pictures. Diverse forms have diverse qualities, and different advantages and disadvantages. The form used affects how the communication is put together and understood. Effective communicators weigh up the compensation of the various forms of communication accessible to them. It is often the case that we use more than one type of communication at a time. The number of forms that may be used through the medium of television in an evening news broadcast is a case in point. Students must be allowed to make decisions concerning the use of forms of communication during their course. They must practice the conventions of the form or format. On a more sophisticated level they should grapple the idea that the medium is indeed the message, and that the same message is transformed in various ways once cast in a form other than its original. References: Borchert, D. M. , & Stewart, D. (1986). Exploring ethics. New York: Macmillan. Canary, D. J. , & Spitzberg, B. H. (1990). Attribution biases and associations between conflict strategies and competence outcomes.Communication Monographs, 57, 139-151. Cooper, M. D. , & Nothstine, W. L. (1998). Power persuasion: Moving an ancient art into the media age. (2nd ed. ). Greenwood, IN: Educational Video Group. Dunbar, N. E. , & Allen, T. H. (2003, May). Toward a message-centered approach to attributions regarding interpersonal conflict. Paper presented at the meeting of the International Communication Association, San Diego, CA. Forsyth, D. R. , & Kelley, K. N. (1994). Attribution in groups: Estimations of personal contributions to collective endeavors. Small Group Research, 25, 367-3

Essay Starbucks Financial Statements

Essay Starbucks Financial Statements Essay Starbucks Financial Statements Starbucks Financial Statements Analysis 1. Starbucks is a globally well-known brand of specialty coffee over 60 countries. Founded in 1985, Starbucks has high reputation for selling high quality coffee as well as tea and other beverages and fresh food through a well decorated and elegant in-store environment. The main initiative for Starbucks is to â€Å"maintain Starbucks standing as one of the most recognized and respected brands in the world.† Aiming to achieve this goal, the globally disciplined expansion and continuous new coffee and categories are two main methods. 2. As the CEO mentioned in letters to shareholders, â€Å"First, we will remain committed to our coffee core. Second, we will exercise relevant, timely, and courageous innovation.† The most significant internal strengthen of Starbucks is the attention focused on core business-high quality and premium handcrafted coffee. In order to achieve this, Starbucks’s company-operated store in U.S. is about 61%. The internal weakness is also obvious, which is the price. Starbucks’s price is apparently higher than other competitors, which could easily lose customer in times of economic hardship. â€Å"In the China and Asia Pacific region in 2012, we once, again posted strong annual returns, including 11 consecutive quarters of double-digit comparable store sales growth.† The global expansion strategy of Starbucks enables Starbucks to compete in a worldwide stage and leverages the revenue with a huge potential, which is a considerable external opportunity. The major threat is from Starbucks’s competitors, McDonald’s and Dunkin Donuts. They are both offering low ends coffee and challenging Starbucks based on their large scale of sale. 3. In Starbucks case, the auditing firm offered unqualified opinion, which means† states that the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position, results of operations, and cash flows of the entity, in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles.† 4. The net sale of 2012 was strong and achieved $6,630.5 million compared to $5,882.4 million in 2011 and $5,231.2 million in 2010. The selling, general and administrative expenses also increased modestly from $1,457.6 million to $1,596.2 million. Due to the strong in sale, the operating income rose to $782.1 million from $630 million in 2011. Moreover, the interest expense, net reduced from $5.6 million to $2.9 million as a consequence of reducing short term borrowing in order to achieve a more conservative capital structure. The net income achieved $488.3 million in 2012, compared to past two years was a great success due to the outperforming sale. Therefore, the basic net income per share ended with $4.06 per share and $4.03 diluted net income per share which was impressive. 5. The cash reduced slightly from $311.2 million in 2011 to $288.3 million in 2012. The short term investments turned to zero at 2012 compared to $174.8 million in 2011 as a way to slow down the domestic expansion. Besides, the long–term debt remained identical in the past year. The merchandise increased from $803.1 million to $867.4 million during 2012. Meanwhile the property, land and plant increased greatly from